It’s easy to forget that Deutsche’s investment bankers are living under the impending threat of a strategic review, due on April 29th, at which point many of their jobs are likely to disappear. For anyone who had forgotten this fact, the Financial Times has a timely reminder.

Come April 29th, Deutsche Bank’s chief executives will “take an axe to their vast investment bank,” says the FT. This will be a “U-turn” the paper notes – until now Deutsche had steadfastly maintained the need for a broad-based global investment bank in much the same way as Goldman Sachs. Needless to say, Deutsche’s Fixed Income Currencies and Commodities (FICC) business is firmly in the firing line. Colin Fan, co-head of the investment bank, was already said to be weighing up business lines on the basis of their profitability and capital requirements back in January. FICC will almost certainly have fared badly.

Separately, if you think it’s good for banks to be run by people who know about investment banking, the replacement of ex-derivatives trader Brady Dougan with ex-management consultant and Insurance executive Tidjane Thiam as CEO of Credit Suisse, looks a bit disastrous. The Financial Times reports that Thiam has been ‘lined up’ to replace Dougan and that an announcement could come as early as Wednesday morning. Bloomberg points out that Thiam’s lack of investment banking experience could make CS more inclined to hack away at its investment bank. As at Deutsche, Credit Suisse’s fixed income traders look particularly vulnerable. – They need to hope their new insurance boss is more amicable than the ex-retail bankers at Barclays and RBS.

Meanwhile:

Ex-executive director in European distressed debt trading at Goldman Sachs says it’s usual to get a bonus equivalent to 5% of your profits and that Goldman discriminated against her when she was pregnant. (Telegraph)